The most common method of transporting a gas cylinder from one location to another is to tilt the cylinder and roll it about its longer axis. There are several disadvantages to moving cylinders in this fashion over considerable distances or up and down steeply inclined surfaces: the physical exertion necessary to complete such a task is considerable; there is a risk of injury; and the cylinder may be damaged if it is dropped with a consequent further risk of injury by escaping gases of toxic or flammable characteristics.
Gas cylinders, even when not completely full, are extremely heavy. As a consequence there is a high rate of back and other injuries amongst welders and other workers using gas cylinders, resulting from attempts to move gas cylinders.
Various non-mechanized transporting devices have been proposed in the past for carrying and moving gas cylinders and other items ranging from dishes to rolls of carpet. Generally, these transporting devices can be divided into two categories, namely, those that have a means to facilitate the loading and unloading of items onto and off of the transporting device and those that lack these means.
Such latter devices typically function as receptacles for a plurality of items which, individually, may be safely lifted off of the ground and placed onto or into the device without much physical exertion. Such devices usually comprise one or more support surfaces for carrying said items, one or more walls or other restraining means attached to the support surfaces to prevent said items from falling out of the transporting device, and wheel arrangements (usually comprising four wheels) directly beneath the support surface to facilitate the movement of the device. Typical known arrangements are shown in Canadian patent 1,016,087 (Nilsson) issued Aug. 23, 1977, Canadian patent 737,353 (Freeman et al) issued June 28, 1966, U.S. Pat. No. 2,955,836 (Patricia) issued Oct. 11, 1960, U.S. Pat. No. 2,833,550 (Frick) issued May 6, 1958 and U.S. design patent U.S. Pat. No. 264,759 (Schilling et al) issued June 1, 1982.
The disadvantage of these prior art devices is that much physical strength is necessary to lift heavier items onto these devices. Furthermore, it would be quite impossible for a person to comfortably lift and load very heavy items onto these devices, such as gas cylinders which usually weigh in the range of 100 kg, without risk of injury.
In one of the typical versions of a transporting device with a means to facilitate the loading and unloading of such heavier items onto and off the device, there is a two-wheeled carrier with an elongated frame having a handle at its upper end and a support plate at the lower end. In use, the cylinder to be transported is tilted forward while the support plate is wedged under the cylinder and a chain may be placed about the cylinder to secure it to the carrier. The carrier and the cylinder are then simultaneously tilted backward and moved about. The loading of such a device is simple, but, due to the weight of the gas cylinder and its high centre of gravity, there is a danger of the carrier and cylinder becoming unstable and tipping over, particularly when they are being moved up or down inclined surfaces, thereby potentially causing injury to the user and/or damage to the carrier.
In another version of a two-wheeled carrier as described above, the problem of loading a gas cylinder from a surface supporting the carrier, such as a shop floor, onto another elevated support surface, such as a flat-bed truck, has been addressed. This arrangement is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,865,339 (Rundborg et al) issued Sept. 12, 1989. Such a carrier avoids the dangers of tipping present with a conventional two-wheeled carrier loaded with a gas cylinder when it is being moved up an inclined surface onto another elevated support surface. But, the Rundborg et al-type carrier still suffers from disadvantages. It is generally adapted to carry only one gas cylinder. The cylinder is not left standing upright on the elevated support surface, but rather it is left in a horizontal position and resting on the device which itself rests on said surface. Therefore, such a device is not adapted to place a gas cylinder in its upright position on an elevated support surface, say a welder's cart, which is relatively less elevated than the bed of a truck.
Another version of a device adapted to overcome some of the disadvantages of two-wheeled carriers has a base section with at least three wheels, and has a small platform which is placed beneath the gas cylinder and is displaced slightly off the floor by means of a lever. This arrangement is shown in Canadian patent 1,174,646 (Gordon) issued Sept. 18, 1984. The disadvantage of such a device is that its design is not suited to accommodate a plurality of gas cylinders. As in Rundborg et al, the device is also not adapted to place a gas cylinder in its upright position on another elevated support surface, such as a welder's cart or the bed of a truck, without the need to move the device with the gas cylinder on it up an inclined surface to the elevated support surface.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a device which is capable of carrying a plurality of gas cylinders, which is stable, and which facilitates the placement of gas cylinders in their upright position, but not exclusively, onto another surface.